There’s one question I am asked all the time:
What’s the secret to great singing?
Now, I totally get it. Who doesn’t want in on the secret to greatness?
The thing is, there’s no useful, practical answer to this question.
While these kinds of broad inspirational secrets are easy to soak in, they are hard to execute. They’re designed to address an insecurity with instant encouragement, without providing any real strategies or substance. As such, they are rarely actionable.
Since I’m all about taking action and digging down to guide you in the real work that will facilitate lasting change in your voice so you sing with your full potential, naturally such a question pushes my buttons.
There’s a better question though –
One I wish more singers would ask me. Here it is…
What specific mistakes keep talented singers stuck and struggling?
Now THAT’s a question ripe for an in-depth, tactical and actionable answer. Like most things worth learning, the answer can’t be summed up in a sound bite. Perhaps this is the beginning of a book I should write! But for now, we can start the conversation by discussing something talented singers can do to move the needle in the direction towards singing with their full potential.
What is it?
Stop manipulating your voice to sound like what you perceive the world wants. Instead be brave and learn to sing with the unique sound you were given.
You DO NOT need to sound like famous singer X or Y or do what someone else does to be successful. When you tie your success to something outside of yourself, you deny all that makes you uniquely you. And guess what? Your voice is a unique gift that nobody else has. EMBRACE IT!!
To do this, stop listening to the sound you make and start feeling the sound in your body instead. Get in touch with the physical feeling of the good technique and recreate that every single time you sing.
We move towards singing with our organic, free, unique voices when we get out of our head and into our body.
I’ve been teaching and singing professionally for over 20 years. I’ve learned a lot of painful and expensive lessons along the way. I can tell you without a shadow of doubt that being a great singer does not happen by accident. Nor is it just about working “harder” or ‘“hustling more.”
To sing with your full potential you must train yourself to focus on the critical things that really move the needle rather then getting caught up in the tidal wave of ego-based compare and despair patterns.
Trust the instrument you were given. Strengthen it with healthy technique. Then you will find yourself in the sweet spot where great singing becomes possible.
My work is dedicated each and every day to helping guide you into that sweet spot.
Lots of love,
Arden
P.S. Are you someone who has had a hard time connecting with the physical feeling of the good technique? Are you someone who finds it difficult to get out of “compare and despair” thinking patterns and trust your instrument? Do you feel frustrated because sometimes you sing with your full potential while other times that feels elusive? Reach out to me about my 4 Month Intensive Training program. It is designed to address these very things!